Gray Sagewort
Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. candicans
Synonym: Artemisia ludoviciana var. latifloba
Gray sagewort as seen along the Round Mountain Trail #805 on the north-facing slopes of Round Mountain, Ochoco National Forest............August 9, 2014.
Characteristics:
Upright, aromatic herbaceous plant with numerous flower heads
clustered close to the upper part of the main stem. The flower heads are discoid,
with 6-45 yellowish disk flowers, depending on the variety. Leaves are entire
to deeply parted or divided. Plants are somewhat silvery haired. Flowers from
July into October.
Habitat:
Western wormwood is a wildflower that may be found in dry open
places.
Range:
Western wormwood is found mostly east of the Cascades and Sierra
Nevada, but is otherwise common in the western United States.
Subspecies of Western Wormwood:
Gray Sagewort, Prairie Sage, Western Mugwort: Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. candicans (Synonym: Artemisia ludoviciana var. latifloba) -
Estes's Artemisia: Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. estesii -
Intermediate Sagewort, Prairie Sage, Western Mugwort: Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. incompta (Synonym: Artemisia ludoviciana var. incompta) -
Columbia River Sagewort, Columbia River Wormwood, Riverbank Wormwood: Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. lindleyana (Synonyms: Artemisia lindleyana, Artemisia prescottiana)
Louisiana Sagewort, Prairie Sage, Silver Wormwood, Western Mugwort: Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. ludoviciana (Synonyms: Artemisia diversifolia, Artemisia gnaphaloides, Artemisia ludoviciana var. ludoviciana, Artemisia vulgaris var. ludoviciana) -
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Additional images of gray sagewort as seen along the Round Mountain Trail #805 on the north-facing slopes of Round Mountain, Ochoco National Forest............August 9, 2014.
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Close-up photos of a stem leaf and of the inflorescence of gray sagewort as seen on Zumwalt Prairie to the northeast of Enterprise, OR...........June 9, 2007.
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Additional close-ups of gray sagewort as seen along Forest Road #1647 in southeastern Logan Valley, Malheur National Forest......................August 4, 2011.
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The photo above shows gray sagewort with shaggy fleabane (Erigeron pumilus) at its base as seen on Zumwalt Prairie to the northeast of Enterprise, OR.............June 9, 2007.
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Gray sagewort as seen along FS Road #38-200 near Spanish Peak, Ochoco National Forest..........June 14, 2015.
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Leaf of gray sagewort as observed at left along the Steelhead Falls Trail, Deschutes Canyon-Steelhead Falls Wilderness Study Area (BLM).......April 25, 2018. The photo at right shows the leaves of gray sagewort as observed along the trail to Bullrun Rock, Monument Rock Wilderness......July 9, 2023.
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Additional close-ups (left and center) of some of the stem leaves of gray sagewort as seen on the west bank of the Deschutes River at its mouth........October 7, 2006. Note the variablility of leaf margins for this species as well as the dense covering of white, appressed hairs on both surfaces of the leaves. The photo at right shows a leaf of gray sagewort as seen along the Line Butte Trail on the south side of Lookout Mountain, Ochoco National Forest.........June 22, 2017.
Paul Slichter